Editorial: Hits and Misses

1/4

Gene J. Puskar/The Associated Press

Cumberland manager Dave Belisle talked with pitcher CJ Davock (left) and catcher Trey Bourque during the fifth inning of an elimination baseball game against Chicago at the Little League World Series tournament in South Williamsport, Pa., on Monday. Chicago won 8-7.

Published: 22 August 2014 07:15 PM

Updated: 22 August 2014 07:20 PM

No losers here

Good youth coaches shape lives, teach youngsters how to win, but also how to lose with pride and grace. Rhode Island Little League coach Dave Belisle’s inspirational speech to his team after they were eliminated from the Little League World Series is one for the ages. Belisle hugged players, told them he loved them, how proud he was and reminded them to hold their heads high. Losing is tough at any age, but Belisle is a guy who clearly understands that being a winner in life is more than the numbers on the scoreboard.

Finding more pets a home

Securing a home for stray dogs and cats isn’t easy. As quickly as one animal goes out the door, another one comes in. But 33 North Texas animal shelters showed creative thinking when they banded together for Empty the Shelter Day last Saturday. Most adoption fees were waived, and people headed to shelters in droves for new pets. By day’s end there had been 2,217 adoptions. Those are animals that should now have a home and good companionship for life. That’s a great thing, for pets and people.

A damp Dollar Day reset in sunshine

Look, we never complain about rain in a North Texas summer, right? But July 19 was Dollar Day at the Dallas Zoo, and plenty of people had their plans washed out that morning. So what did the Dallas Zoo do? They set another Dollar Day, and it was a huge success. On Tuesday, more than 35,000 people streamed through the zoo’s gates and past its many exhibits. It was an all-time attendance record for a zoo that keeps getting better and better since the city put it under private management. The rain is always welcome, but the zoo made a damp day right by hitting reset on Dollar Day.

Commissioners finally see the light on procurement overhaul

The Dallas County Commissioners Court has finally taken action to overhaul its badly flawed procurement procedures, albeit prompted by the indictment of Commissioner John Wiley Price on corruption charges. The commissioners initially approved just 12 of 47 best-practices recommendations for purchasing procedures, suggested by a paid consultant in 2009. Commissioners on Tuesday finally approved a long list of changes, which should tighten the procedural loopholes that undermine public confidence and tempt officials toward corrupt practices.

‘Better than macramé,’ actor-director was a Bath House hit

Larry Lee Randolph brightened the lives of thousands of mainly elderly theatergoers in Dallas with his weekday play productions at the Bath House Cultural Center on White Rock Lake. “Better than macramé,” Randolph used to joke about his One Thirty production company, whose afternoon stage plays provided an important social venue for busloads of seniors. Randolph, 77, died this week after an award-winning acting and directing career spanning four decades. He will be missed.

Plenty of choices in Austin

We’ve said voters deserve choices at election time, and in Austin, they’re getting it several times over. Seventy-eight people filed to run for 11 seats on the Austin City Council this fall, a record as Austin shifts from at-large council seats to single-member districts. Several races drew at least six candidates, and the largest field is in an east Austin district where 12 people want a council seat. It might be a reporter’s nightmare, but it is always good news when voters have choices. Are you listening, Dallas?

Winning isn’t everything, as Jones’ Cowboys prove again

Playoff games and certainly Super Bowl trips might be consigned to the dusty pages of a Dallas Cowboys historical treatise or some NFL Films rerun, but all is not lost. Literally. Jerry Jones might have misplaced his touch for winning football games, but making money remains a top-shelf skill. His Cowboys, for the eighth consecutive year, are the most valuable NFL franchise, according to Forbes, and this year became the first U.S. sports franchise worth more than $3 billion. Whatever criticism Jones gets for his on-the-field product, he probably sleeps well knowing the Cowboys are worth more than double the NFL average of $1.43 billion. Power sweep that, Vince Lombardi.

Johnny Backup’s rough night

No, that wasn’t some secret Aggie hand sign from Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel this week. You know, that one finger he flashed at taunting Washington Redskins players during a ragged preseason showing. You know the finger: THE finger. (Not the one pictured at right.) Mr. Football later conceded he lost his composure. Even later he lost the competition to be the team’s starting quarterback. Did the one affect the other? Not clear, but it’s crystal that JFB is still capable of dazzling people, even with rookie mistakes.

To post a comment, log into your chosen social network and then add your comment below. Your comments are subject to our Terms of Service and the privacy policy and terms of service of your social network. If you do not want to comment with a social network, please consider writing a letter to the editor.